Apple Original Films is hoping that by December 2, 2022 moviegoers are going to be willing to take in a new film starring Will Smith. Emancipation, directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day), stars the disgraced actor and marks his first major film project to be released following the slap heard around the world.
For those who need a refresher, Will Smith reacted with violence during the 2022 Oscars after Chris Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Smith walked on stage and slapped Rock, and then warned him to keep Jada’s name out of his mouth. Smith was subsequently barred from attending the Oscars for 10 years and he resigned from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences.
In addition to Will Smith, the Emancipation cast includes Ben Foster, Charmaine Bingwa, Gilbert Owuor, Mustafa Shakir, and Steven Ogg. Grant Harvey, Ronnie Gene Bivens, Jayson Warner Smith, Jabbar Lewis, Michael Luwoye, Aaron Moten, and Imani Pullum also star.
William N. Collage wrote the screenplay and Escape Artists’ Todd Black, McFarland Entertainment’s Joey McFarland, and Westbrook Studios’ Smith and Jon Mone produced. Chris Brigham, Antoine Fuqua, James Lassiter, Heather Washington, Cliff Roberts, Glen Basner, and Scott Greenberg executive produced.
A launch on Apple TV+ on December 9th will follow the film’s December 2nd theatrical release.
The Plot: Emancipation tells the triumphant story of Peter (Smith), a man who escapes from slavery, relying on his wits, unwavering faith and deep love for his family to evade cold-blooded hunters and the unforgiving swamps of Louisiana on his quest for freedom. The film is inspired by the 1863 photos of “Whipped Peter,” taken during a Union Army medical examination, that first appeared in Harper’s Weekly. One image, known as “The Scourged Back,” which shows Peter’s bare back mutilated by a whipping delivered by his enslavers, ultimately contributed to growing public opposition to slavery.
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